Sorry I haven't updated in awhile, but I've been busy.
IT'S HALLOWEEN!!! YAY!!
I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 13
Listen Closely To The Grunts
....\~/....
Thursday, October 31st:
Madame Pince walked through the many rows of bookshelves, an armful of books slowly slipping out of her grasp. She shushed some giggling girls and broke apart a couple that were sneaking kisses behind a propped up book. It was clear that Madame Pince was a martinet, leading her students with an iron grip. They listened to her, in fear that she'd smack them with the ruler that she slipped in her robes. Rumors were spread that she was once a Beater on a Quidditch team, but that remained unclear.
But for the past month, the library was quieter than usual, probably because winter was just around the corner and students hung out near the lake in order to bask in the remaining sun before clouds enveloped it. It was a joyous occasion for the woman though because those nasty Slytherins that roamed the halls weren't in her precious library anymore, but outside causing trouble for others. This brought a sort of smile to her face. Even thought most of the noisy students were outside, but she gained a complainer.
"Their nasty feet are touching my territory..." Madame Pince smirked when she heard the girl's daily griping. The woman stopped to watch the girl stare out the window, leaning against the wall with her cheek pressed up against her palm. A deep, disgusted scowl usually accompanied the girl's annoyed expression, causing the librarian to laugh silently. Madame Pince learned that the girl's name was Logan Wolfram, one of the new Gryffindors that Minerva often talked about. She was warned about the girl's wit and knack for breaking rules so of course when Logan began to come to the library, she kept her eyes on her.
After a couple of weeks of Logan's visits, Madame Pince learned that the didn't hold any threat and treated the books with respect unlike most. And her thirst for knowledge was rare find. To keep her occupied and her mind away from the numerous students that were invading her so called "spot", Madame Pince would set a random book in front of the complainer and walk away, only to turn and watch Logan stare at the treasure, opening it slowly with a thoughtful look in her eye.
"Aw man, Draco is contaminating my spot...wonderful..."
Madame Pince stepped closer to Logan who noticed her, but wasn't acknowledging her presence. She often did that which struck a nerve in Madame Pince, but she didn't bring it up. She felt like she wasn't worth any of Logan's time.
"Tell me about this girl...Logan Wolfram. She seems different..."
The older woman laughed, taking a sip of her pumpkin juice. "She's different alright, but she's like everyone else at Hogwarts. She has her good points and bad points."
"What are her good points?"
Minerva gave a tight-lipped smile. "Laid-back, but intelligent. She won't cause you any trouble as long as you're a friend. She's hell for those that she doesn't like." Madame Pince looked up from her food over to the girl, smiling a bit. "I make sure to keep an eye out for her."
Logan suddenly got alert, gripping the window sill. Her eyebrows were narrowed and she seemed more tense than ever. "Oh he is so going to get it."
The scarred girl turned from the window and ran past Madame Pince, who watched her leave. Her eyes noticed the bag that laid on the floor, its contents spilling. "You forgot your-" But she was gone, already out of earshot. Madame Pince looked back over to the bag, setting her books on the table. She lifted the bag up, jumping slightly when a large book fell to the ground, creating a huge thud.
'Stay out' was scribbled at the top, but those words didn't keep the woman from turning to the first page. The picture shocked her when her brown eyes scanned it. There was a face, half of it was a girl with thoughtful eyes and a grin on her face, but the other half was a gruesome-looking face. Pince noted the snarl showing sharp-looking teeth, a mean glint in the narrowed eyes, and three scars protruding down the face diagonally.
At the bottom, in a the same small scribble were the words: What I Look Like In The Others Eyes.
....\~/....
"C'mon Longbottom, catch it if you can!" Draco taunted as his goon, Goyle, held the Gryffindor's book in the air. "Into Herbology now, are we? Teacher's pet..." Draco hissed, a snide smirk on his face when he watched the chubby boy jump up, his fingers barely brushing the book. Slytherins formed a ring around the small group, howling when Neville's face flushed extremely red. Draco laughed until a force knocked him back, slamming him into the ground. The Slytherins stopped laughing, but were now glaring in the same direction.
"Didn't I tell you to leave him alone?"
Draco looked up to see his rival, Logan, standing there. Her arms were crossed and a scornful look plastered on her face. Slytherins gasped and Neville gave a look of shock when Logan reached her hand out. Draco smirked, taking it carelessly. Neville shook his head in disbelief. Was Logan slowly siding with Draco? Was it because she was tired of rescuing him all the time and didn't want to bother with him anymore?
Draco dusted his clothes off, pieces of dying grass still sticking to his clothes. Logan stood there, watching him with a bored expression on her face. The blonde smirked, sticking his hand out to a expressionless Logan. "How about it, Wolfram, truce?" His grin made her frown, but she calmly outstretched her hand, almost touching his. Logan pulled it back a second before their hands touched, scaling her hand over her head.
"Psyche!" Logan laughed out, a grin on her face.
Draco gritted his teeth, clenching his fists. "Wipe that grin off your face, Wolfram."
Logan grinned even more, causing Draco to become more frustrated. He swept his fist out in anger, catching Logan's cheek. She stumbled back, landing on her back side. Draco towered over her, opening and closing his fist numerous times. It was probably the first time he ever punched someone due to the twisted look on his face. His cold gaze flicked over to her, smirking slightly. The girl's cheek was slowly turning red, a bit of bruising showing. He had a good punch, that was for sure.
"How did that feel, second-hand loon?" he asked, beaming proudly when the Slytherin girls giggled. Logan narrowed her eyes, growling through gritted teeth. "Magnificent..." she muttered, slowly getting up. She rubbed her cheek, wincing a bit. Logan turned her back Draco, walking calmly over to Neville. She pulled him up, pushing him towards the castle. Neville looked over his shoulder at a following Logan. The Slytherins were all howling, pointing at her back. Her fists were clenched, knuckles turning white.
"Are you okay?" he asked, worried. He went to step next to her, but she continued to push him forward. The dangerous look never left her face, even when they did enter the castle. Neville stopped near the doors, watching Logan walk away.
Never in his life had he seen someone so dark-looking...
....\~/....
Lunar sat outside, a large book in her lap. The Potions test was coming up soon and Professor Snape had warned them that it'd contain questions that asked for every detail. To most that would seem a little extreme, especially for those that never paid attention in his class, but with a little studying, she was sure that she could go by with a passing grade. So far, she had been doing well in all her classes, but the homework had been easy up to that point.
"Hey Fred, wait up!"
Lunar's face got extremely red as she looked over her shoulder. There he was, that same casual grin on his face, that same playful sparkle in his eyes, and that same flaming red hair that was no where near as bright as her face at the moment. His twin came running up to him, followed by Lee Jordan, their best friend. Lunar gulped, looking back at her book. A sigh came next, closing her eyes slowly.
"Why are you sitting here by yourself?"
Lunar squeaked, looking up at the grinning Fred. "Um...I...um..."
"Where are all your friends?" he asked. Lunar only stared, making a fool out of herself for not finding the words to say. He noticed this and placed a hand on her head. "What are you reading?" he questioned. The small girl looked back down at her textbook. "There's a test in Potions...I'm just studying..." she said quietly, smiling a bit. Fred nodded, sitting next to her.
"Hey, you're in Ravenclaw, right?" That was an obvious question, considering that her hood was outlined with blue-the Ravenclaw color. But Lunar still nodded, "Why?"
"Well, my brother and I are coming up with this amazing prank to pull on our ol' buddy Filch and I have no time to do my homework," He gave a sheepish smile that made her melt inside. "Do you think you can do it for me?"
"Um...well...I guess I can."
Fred jumped up, grinning. "Thanks a bunch." Lunar watched him walk away. He gave a wave over his shoulder. "See you later, Lunar!" A slight stream of blush ran across her face.
'He knows my name...'
....\~/....
Near the Halloween feast...
....\~/....
Logan had never felt so irritated in her life. Well, she can't really say that. She's had worse times. But that's not the point; the point was, was that Lavender Brown was definitely getting on her last nerve. The green-eyed girl sat there on the overly comfortable couch, her head in her hands with a smirking Lavender leaning on the back of the couch. Her sandy blonde hair was piled on top of her head, eyes having that devious gleam.
"So, where did you get that bruise?" she asked, staring intently on the dark purple spot on her cheek.
Logan narrowed her eyes, staring into the flames of the fire that one of the students had started just before. The heat radiated off of the roaring red, stroking her face. Sometimes she wished she could collect a ball of fire and chuck it at Lavender, burning off all her hair so she didn't have to listen to the constant complaints that Lavender griped about every morning. 'It's too frizzy!' or 'It's took light!' That's what she heard all the time...and it got old!
"I heard from Seamus Finnigan who heard from Lunar Calypsa who heard it from Cho Chang that you received it from Draco Malfoy. Is that true?"
That hit Logan hard for some reason, probably because her pride was damaged badly. A whiny-ass like Draco punching her and getting away with it...that'd leave a mark on not only her cheek, but on her reputation as well. And it wasn't like she was going to forget about...she already had a plan and it involved underwear and wartcap powder or bulbadox powder, she hadn't decided yet.
"Well, are the rumors true?"
Logan rubbed her face, standing up with a sigh. Turning halfway towards an amused Lavender, she put her hand on her hip and said, "Yeah, it's true..."
"Ouch..."
Logan started to walk away, trying to head up to the Girl's Dormitory to retrieve her wand, but Lavender blocked her path. "Why'd he punch you? I'm curious." Logan just stared at her with an expressionless face. She gently pushed past the blonde and continued to make her way up the stairs. Right now, all she wanted to do was clear her mind by absent-mindfully strumming her guitar, something she hadn't done in awhile. However, she wasn't going to be able to do that with an annoying girl tagging along.
"You know, you two are perfect for each other. I think he likes you."
Logan stopped, turning with both feet on separate stairs. "I do not like Draco Malfoy! I do not like Slytherins in general! He doesn't like me and neither do his friends! Now, will you please stop breathing down my neck?!"
Lavender stayed on the stairs while Logan walked away, but she too stopped, turning back around in hope that she would be able to find the twins.
....\~/....
She found them, standing in the Entrance Courtyard, talking with Lee Jordan. It looked like they were planning something, but they would have to put whatever devious plan on hold for a moment when she approached. Lee nudged George in the arm, pointing towards her. Both twins looked over their shoulders, a grin stretching across their faces when they saw her. "Well, if it isn't our favorite first year! Been awhile since we saw you last." Fred said, stepping towards her. George poked her bruise, giggling. Logan swatted his hand away and they noticed her irritation.
"What's up?" they asked together.
Logan blinked, sighing with her hands on her hips. "I need some advice. Should I use wartcap or bulbadox powder?"
"And for what, my dear?" Fred asked, detecting that devious glint in her eyes. The gleam that they always had when they were planning something devious. Logan ushered them in, whispering her plan in their ears. The three chuckled lowly. "That's brilliant, Logan, truly brilliant."
Logan ran her fingers through her hair. "I know that Snape will be in his office so I was wondering if there was a passage directly to his storeroom." She frowned when the twins shook their heads. "We hate to say it, but there's no passage there. We're afraid that you're on your own for this one."
The girl nodded, "That's alright; I actually wanted to do this solo, no offense."
"None taken," George said. "When are you going to strike?" he asked. Logan gave a small smile.
"Tonight of course, after the feast."
....\~/....
Lunar glimpsed up and down the long table, feeling slightly queasy at seeing all the sweets that sat in front of her. All the other Ravenclaws gulped down candy gleefully while she was hesitant. Her eyes rested on a delicious-looking treacle tart and she unconsciously reached out, grabbing a piece. She sunk her teeth in the sweet, smiling appreciatively. Now she knew why Harry talked about these all the time.
"Looks like someone is finally trying new things." Lunar looked over her shoulder to see a smiling Logan. The small girl noticed that the smile wasn't her usual, but a sad one and her eyes were full of thought. Lunar's eyes went down to the cast on her arm, slowly healing her wrist. She remembered that day, September 11th, when Logan was carried into the Hogwarts castle by Hagrid with a worried Professor McGonagall trailing behind them. Logan's sleeves and pant legs had been rolled up, revealing nasty-looking cuts and bruises. Her wrist had protruded in an odd way. Her condition left students scratching her head, but when Lunar visited her with a lamb chop in hand, Logan explained that she had gone out early in the morning to watch the sunrise when a pack of wolves came out and attacked.
Of course this story was believed true, Lunar couldn't help but feel like her friend was hiding something.
Lunar missed her happy, sarcastic friend, but even now, when Draco would shoot insults towards her, she'd ignore them. It was like Logan left and a depressed girl replaced her. Harry often talked about how she seemed distant from everyone, usually receding to the library or lake to think as she claimed. Lunar wasn't the only one that noticed her strange behavior, but also Hermione. The Gryffindor was panicked, even if she denied it. She'd often bribe the old Logan out with peppermint, but the scarred girl would reject it and walk away with her hands shoved in her pockets.
Lunar looked at the sweet, setting it down on her plate. "Yeah..." she said, wringing her hands. It was like talking to a whole new person...
Logan narrowed her eyes, but looked over her shoulder when the double doors burst open, crashing into the wall. Professor Quirrell came running in, a frightful look in his eyes and he was panting tremendously. "Troll in the dungeons!! Troll in the dungeons!!" He stopped in the middle of the room, face red from all the running. "Thought you ought to know." Everyone watched him collapse and they all screamed in horror, throwing their food down on the table and starting to run out.
"SILENCE!!!" Dumbledore yelled, people frozen in their steps. Once the room was dead silent, Dumbledore raised his hand. "Prefects will escort their houses back to the common rooms in a calm manner." Prefects raised their hands in the air, signaling to students to follow them. Lunar pushed past Logan who stood there calmly. The Hall was emptying when Harry and Ron came running up to her.
"We have to get Hermione! She's in the Girl's Bathroom! She doesn't know!" Harry informed. Logan's eyes got wide, running towards the doors. Her friends followed her, struggling to keep up with her.
....\~/....
Hermione brushed the tears away with her sleeve as she stepped out of the stall, sniffling a bit. Ron's harsh words made her come here instantly before anyone saw her tears. She never cried in front of people because she didn't want to answer any questions or be given sympathy. She hated sympathy with a passion, made her feel weak, dependent.
Hermione stopped in her tracks when a foul odor entered her nostrils, practically making her eyes water. She covered her nose, trying not to gag. "Dear God, what is that-" A huge foot came into view and she trailed her eyes up the leg, stomach, and hideous look of a large mountain troll, club in hand and face scrunched up as if it just smelled its own stench. Hermione's eyes got wide and she hurried into the bathroom stall, falling to the floor just in time for the club to swing right over her head. Wood pieces littered the ground around her, the sound of the troll smashing more stalls filling her ears.
"Hermione!!"
She looked over to her left for an instant to see Logan, Harry, and Ron entering the bathroom, skidding to a halt when they almost collided into the troll's leg. The troll looked down at them, giving Hermione the chance to crawl over to the shelter of the sinks, but the club came inches to the place where she crawled under. "Help!" she cried out, covering her head with her arms.
Ron picked up a wood piece. "Hey, peabrain!!" The troll looked over at him, only to have the wood bounce off his nose. He shook his head, grunting loudly.
Logan gave a confused look when she heard the words, "That kinda hurt!" It was a low voice too, nowhere near the pitch of Harry or Ron and it definitely wasn't hers. The troll brought its club down and as it lifted it, Harry grabbed onto it. He jumped onto the troll's shoulders at a considerable height. The troll grunted, trying to shake Harry off, but failing miserably. "Get off me, you pesky human!" Logan stepped back, eyebrows knitted together as the troll yelled, swinging its club everywhere.
She watched as Ron pointed his wand at the troll.
"Swish and flick!" Hermione instructed from the sinks.
Ron did as she said while saying, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The club floated in midair, preventing the hit that the troll was going to give Harry. "What?" the troll questioned, looking up at its club. Ron released the spell and they all watched as the club fell on the troll's head. It lost its grip on Harry and he fell to the ground. The troll stumbled and finally fell to the ground at Ron's feet.
Hermione crawled from her hiding place, cautiously looking over the creature. Logan continued to stare at it. A group of footsteps came running in and Professor McGonagall, Snape, and Quirrell all came running in, Madame Pomfrey following close behind them, in case the troll got a hold of anyone. Professor McGonagall looked between the floor, especially at Logan's shocked expression...the first emotion she had shown since her transformation.
"What happened here?!" the woman asked, stepping closer to the creature. Hermione stepped towards them, wringing her hands. "I'm sorry Professor, but I was the one that looked for it. I read about them and thought I could take it."
Professor McGonagall looked at her with a surprised look on her face. Hermione was the last one she thought would do something so reckless; she never broke the rules. "Well, five points from Gryffindor for recklessness." McGonagall turned to Harry and Ron. "I still say that it was luck, not many first years can take on and defeat a mountain troll. Five points each will be given to both of you for sheer, dumb luck."
Harry and Ron beamed, looking over at Hermione, but she was concentrating on Logan who crouching in front of the troll. She watched as Logan set her hand down on the troll's head and rubbed it gently, a sad, yet compassionate look in her eyes. McGonagall caught this and quickly told the three to leave. They did, but Hermione gave one last look at Logan before heading towards the Common Room.
Logan looked over the troll's body. "Where does it hurt?" They weren't normal words she said, but a series of grunts. The teacher's gave curious looks when the troll responded. "My foot...I have something stuck in my foot." Of course they couldn't understand this, but Logan sure could. They watched her stand up, walking to the end of the troll's long body and sure enough, a large stick was stuck in his foot. She pulled it out, only a small trickle of blood running down his foot down. Logan grabbed a roll of tissue paper and begun bandaging his foot.
After she was done, the troll sat up, still towering over her. "Thank you," he grunted. "That's been bothering me all day long. I got it stuck when I was taking my morning walk." On the outside, the troll seemed stupid, but in reality he seemed very bright. Logan smiled, crouching in front of him. "No problem; it was my pleasure."
"You must be the only one that can speak to me. Those four have looks of confusion on their faces." Logan looked over and laughed. "That they do." she said whilst nodding. The troll grunted, standing up. "I must return to my home. I'm feeling a bit famished." And the adults watched the troll leave, almost like he knew where he was going. Logan continued to stare at the place where the troll once sat, smiling a bit.
"Let me guess, I can speak troll?"
Professor McGonagall nodded, "Yes, you can." Minerva gave a small smile when her student's usual wolfish grin stretched out across her face. "Oh yeah, I'm good! Believe it!"
'Oh, but I do, Logan. I truly do.'
....\~/....
Draco Malfoy snored softly in his bed, signaling that he was sound asleep. She crept near his bed and sprinkled bulbadox powder on his clothes, both uniforms because she wasn't sure which one he was going to wear. Logan crouched next to his bed, grinning.
"Sleep tight, little Drakie."
The blonde shot up, sweat rolling down his face. He looked to the side of his bed to see that the girl wasn't there, nothing had been touched.
"It was only a nightmare." He laid back down, eyes peering towards the door.
What he didn't know was that Logan was standing on the rotating piece of wall, laughing deviously all the way down the passage.
Review please!!